Broken World
by acceptable
Summary: The Power Of Three is broken. Cole's machinations ensure Paige never meets her sisters and causes a downward spiral for Piper and Phoebe as Piper's marriage falls apart and Phoebe loses her husband to evil. Cole's alternate reality from Centennial Charmed
1. Prologue

Well, here it is... my new story...!  
I hope u all like it. I normally try to do original story lines and while I was watching Centennial Charmed I was wondering about the lives of the people from that alternate reality, like what happens to them when the reality had been changed back...but what happened to them after seemed way too compliated coz I had absolutely no idea what to write so I decided to write a story about their lives between when the reality would have changed and when Paige arrived from the normal reality. So this is my take on what Piper and Phoebe went through; how Piper and Leo got divorced and how Cole turned evil, dragging Phoebe down with him.  
Enjoy! And please review!

-AutumnAngel-371**

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Summary

Prue's death had broken the power of three. But what would have happened if Piper and Phoebe never met Paige to reconstitute the Charmed One's? What if Cole's reality he created in Centennial Charmed actually happened? What would Piper and Phoebe's lives have been like as Piper's marriage fell apart and Phoebe's husband turned evil? What if suddenly a young woman appeared claiming to be their long lost half sister from an alternate reality?

This is the story of the Charmed world without Paige, leading up to the events of Centennial Charmed.

**Prologue: **

"Well, how do you feel?" the Avatar asked Cole, anticipation clearly visible in his eyes.

Cole, kneeling on the ground, breathed deeply, "I feel alive. Powerful."

Cole stood up and the Avatar grinned, "You are one of us now." He told Cole, "Come."

"Ah ah ah. Not so fast." Cole walked over to the window and surveyed the city with a cold gaze, "First I get my wife back once and for all."

"That's what you wanted?" the Avatar asked, shaking his head, "Your new powers can't affect love."

"Maybe not. But I'm hoping it'll change the one event that lead to our downfall." Cole turned back to face the Avatar, "The day that Phoebe met her new sister. The day the Charmed Ones were reconstituted.

"Go back in time?"

"No, better." Cole told him, a rare smile spreading across his face, "Undo what was to change what is." Cole sighed, thinking back to how things used to be, "We were at our best, Phoebe and I, before Paige. If they hadn't have found each other, we'd be married. Instead..."

"You have no idea what you're getting into." exclaimed the Avatar, "Changing the past to create an alternate reality has unforeseen consequences, Cole. Even for you. The ripple effect of even one small change could..."

"I don't care!" interrupted Cole angrily, "I am _not_ spending another hundred birthdays without her."

The Avatar bowed his head and left without another word.

Cole spread his arms wide and began chanting, the words echoing around the room. A ripple extended out from Cole, spreading across the city, across the country, across the whole world. The ripple stretched throughout time, erasing any evidence that Paige had survived the attack from Shax.

The ripple reached 2001 and blanketed a witch's call. Absorbed the spell that brought Paige to her sisters. Undid what was to change what will be.

At that moment in time the reality split into two; one natural, the other not. They would cross over again one day and merge again; but until then the two realities ran parallel to each other.

* * *

Year 2001

"Hear now the words of the witches,  
The secrets we hid in the night.  
The oldest of Gods are invoked here,  
The great work of magic is sought.  
In this night and in this hour,  
I call upon the ancient power.  
Bring back my sister.  
Bring back the power of three."

Piper closed her red-rimmed eyes and silently prayed that her spell would work. 'Please.' She inwardly pleaded. She didn't know to whom she was begging; she didn't care. As long as they brought Prue back to life.

Piper opened her eyes and stared tearfully into the candle's flame. The air was still; there was no mystical wind that signified her spell was working. Nothing had happened.

Piper buried her face in her hands in despair.

"Piper?" called a soft voice.

"Prue?" choked out Piper, raising her head hopefully.

Phoebe entered the attic pulling a jacket around her nightclothes. Her face was pale and tear-stained.

"Sweetie, it's 4 o'clock in the morning." Phoebe spoke gently, "What are you doing?"

Piper stared blankly into the candle's flame. She opened her mouth to reply but nothing came out.

Phoebe felt more tears fill her eyes as she saw her older sister's pain. She knew how Piper was feeling. Prue had always been there, always been part of their lives. No matter how much they had argued, in the end they had been best friends not just sisters. 'Since we became witches' realised Phoebe. Witchcraft had brought them together but it had also taken Prue away.

Focusing on Piper, Phoebe noticed her hand. "You're bleeding." she exclaimed softly, reaching for a clean cloth to wrap her hand in.

"I don't understand why magic can't fix this. Why we can't bring Prue back." whispered Piper brokenly.

Phoebe stared silently at their reflections in the attic window, her own thoughts mirroring Piper's.

"It's not like we haven't cheated death before." continued Piper, "I don't understand why this time is any different."

"Because Leo can't heal the dead, Piper. You know that." said Phoebe gently.

"There's other magic; magic that we've used before." interrupted Piper desperately, "scrying, calling a lost witch, reversing time." Piper slammed shut the Book of Shadows with a bang. "It's like the book just deserted us and deserted Prue, and I don't understand why."

Phoebe reached out for Piper's hand. "We lost out sister. How can we ever understand that?" She paused, her eyes meeting Piper's, "We've tried every magical way to bring her back; but we can't. She's gone."

Piper let out a sob and fell into Phoebe's arms.

"I just…I thank God that I didn't lose you too." whispered Phoebe, holding Piper tight.

The sisters stood there for a minute, their presences comforting each other, before Phoebe pulled away and sighed.

"We have to get some rest. Prue will never forgive us if we look bad at her funeral." Phoebe said, trying to lighten the sombre atmosphere.

Piper gave a slight smile through her tears.

The sisters left the attic arm in arm, leaving the book on the table and closing the door behind them.

In the attic, the Book of Shadows lay motionless on the table, the triquetra on the front cover dull and lifeless.

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	2. Chapter 1

Thanx to Barb6, Mysterious Midnight and chyp for reviewing!  
The next two chapters aren't all that long but i promise they get longer (coz I've already written some of them!) and they steer away from the events of Charmed Again (coz obviously Paige isn't there). But Paige will come back in the story in the end, when the events in Centennial Charmed occur.  
Hope u like and review!

I forgot this in the first chapter: **Disclaimer:** As I'm sure u all know I don't own Charmed but i though I'd better put it in anyway!

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**Chapter One**

"Printing!" called out Paige breezily from her desk in South Bay Social Services.

Paige stood up and made her way through the desks towards the printer. As she passed an office as voice called out to her.

"Paige, you find that study yet?"

"Yeah, Mr Cowan, It's in the printer." replied Paige, pulling it out and handing it to him.

"Thanks." Mr Cowan walked back to his office, reading the printout as Paige stopped to chat to one of her co-workers.

Across the room, another of Paige's co-workers flicked through the morning paper, ignoring the obituary for a Prue Halliwell, informing people of the time and whereabouts of her funeral.

* * *

In the manor, Phoebe threaded her way through the other mourners towards her dad. Victor was staring vacantly at the floor in a corner away from the crowd.

"Can I get you anything?" Phoebe asked him.

Victor smiled sadly and shook his head, "No thanks sweetie." he declined.

Phoebe nodded slightly and turned to a nearby table, rearranging the plants distractedly.

She looked up as the sound of footsteps approached them.

"Look who's back." Leo said a slight smile on his face.

"Cole!" exclaimed Phoebe rushing over to hug him, "I was afraid you weren't going to make it to the funeral." she told him relieved.

"Well," began Cole, "I…I can't make it…or, shouldn't anyway, The Source has got every demonic bounty hunter out there looking for me.

"Yeah. So what else is new?" snapped Phoebe, suddenly feeling a brief burst of anger overwhelm her grief.

"This is different." Cole told her gently, "Saving you makes it different, makes me a traitor. He not going to stop until he finds me and I don't want that happening at Prue's funeral."

"So, we'll protect you." replied Phoebe determinedly.

Cole paused, "You can't protect me." he said quietly but firmly.

"Why not? We're still witches, aren't we?" retorted Phoebe.

Cole gave Phoebe a sympathetic look, "Yeah, but you're not the Charmed Ones anymore."

Phoebe felt her eyes drawn to the partially repaired wall where Prue had died. It was still unpainted and Phoebe felt her grief rising up again.

"He's right, Phoebe." Leo drew Phoebe's attention away from the wall. "Without the power of three…" Leo trailed off

"I don't understand. Isn't it harder to track a demon in a cemetery, Cole?" Phoebe exclaimed tearfully, "You have to go. I need you there." she pleaded.

Cole's eyes met Phoebe's. He nodded.

* * *

Piper sat in front of her mirror, lost in thought, slowly brushing her hair.

Outside, in the hallway, Leo paused before easing the door open. "Piper?" he called softly.

Piper gave no sign that she had heard him. She continued brushing her hair, staring unseeingly though her tear-filled eyes into the mirror.

Leo entered the room, "Honey we have to go." he told her gently.

Piper shook her head, "I don't want to go." she whispered brokenly.

Leo knelt down beside her, "Why not?" he asked.

Piper laid the brush down on the table and turned to face Leo. "Because if I go, that'll mean that Prue's really not coming back, and I don't think I can handle that." she sobbed.

"We can handle it together." Leo assured her.

Piper shook her head again, "She's been there my whole life. I've always had a big sister. And I don't know how to live without one." Piper sniffed and tried to blink back her tears.

"Piper…" began Leo, reaching out to touch her shoulder.

Piper pulled away from him, "Why didn't you save her?" she demanded.

"I tried." Leo said softly.

"But you didn't." accused Piper, "Why didn't they let you save her, too?"

"The Elders? They couldn't. They don't have that kind of power." Leo told her.

"Then what the hell good are they?" exploded Piper. She stood up abruptly and made her way to the door.

Leo got back to his feet and followed her, "It's okay to be angry…"

"I'm not angry. I am pissed off!" interrupted Piper, "Don't you understand? You healed the wrong sister! You saved me because I'm your damn wife, and you should've saved her because she was the best! Because she…you should…" Piper dissolved into tears again and collapsed into Leo's arms. "Why do they put us through so much for it to end this way?" she sobbed.

* * *

"May I be seen?" a sultry voice asked through the darkness.

"Have you found Belthazor?" demanded the Source.

"No. Something else…"

The Source turned to stare at the empty space the voice was coming from. He waved a clawed hand, scarred and mutilated.

"…Something more important perhaps." The Oracle materialised, her hand caressing a smoke-filled crystal ball.

"Nothing is more important." stated the Source harshly.

"Not even The Charmed Ones?" questioned the Oracle.

"The Charmed Ones are dead." the Source replied a cruel smile spreading across his face under the shadow of his hood.

"Not all of them." contradicted the Oracle.

"One gone ends the threat. Of course, if you had foreseen that a white-lighter was going to help Belthazor save his witch, they'd all be gone. Be grateful I don't turn you into a snake." spat the Source.

"Yes, but then how would you see into the future without me?" replied the Oracle smoothly.

"Without the Charmed Ones to worry about anymore, I may not need to." snarled the Source.

"Mmm. Well, in that case, you'd better keep me around a little while longer." said the Oracle mysteriously, running a finger over her crystal ball. The smoke in it seemed to thicken as the Source turned his gaze towards it.

"What do you see?" the Source demanded.

"I see…" whispered the Oracle, "I see…another"


	3. Chapter 2

Thanks again to Mysterious Midnight and chyp for reviewing!

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Chapter Two**

"That which belongs to fellowship and love, that which belongs to the circle, remains with us.

The wheel turns. As life is a day, so our sister has passed into night.

Nothing is final. And we who remain behind know that one day, we will once again share the bread and wine with our sister.

O blessed spirit, we bid you farewell, for you await a new destiny."

The Wiccan priestess untied the silver rope resting on Prue's ivory coffin and gently laid it in a silver chalice. She bent down and blew out the three candles surrounding it.

Phoebe laid down the program, the triquetra on it symbolising the power of three, 'which doesn't exist anymore.' thought Phoebe sadly.

Phoebe began thanking the mourners for coming. Other mourners were crying, reminding Phoebe of how many people Prue had touched in her lifetime.

As the last of the mourners left Phoebe turned to find Cole, who was standing slightly out of the way. 'I'm so glad he's here.' thought Phoebe.

Suddenly two bounty hunters shimmering in either side of Cole interrupted Phoebe's thoughts. Both bounty hunters raised their hands and fired bolts of lightning at him.

Cole dove to the ground, the bolts of lightning hitting the altar. Leo pulled Phoebe behind a pillar as Cole got back to his feet and threw an energy ball at one of the bounty hunters, vanquishing it.

A third bounty hunter materialised behind Cole, but before he could fire, Phoebe ran out from behind the pillar and kicked the demon to the ground.

The second demon turned to fire at Phoebe but Cole fired another energy ball, vanquishing it as Phoebe ducked behind a nearby statue.

"Stop it!" demanded Piper slightly hysterical.

Cole fired a third energy ball at the third bounty hunter, the resulting explosion causing Piper to let out an angry yell.

"Stop it! Stop it! Stop it!" she screamed, "Damn it! This is Prue's funeral, for God's sake! Can't we at least bury her in peace? Is that too much to ask?"

* * *

"Phoebe. Victor." Darryl's voice was slightly apologetic, "Sorry about this, but Inspector Cortez insisted on meeting today."

"I just wanted to extend my deepest sympathies." said Inspector Cortez to Phoebe and Victor.

Phoebe smiled briefly, "Thank you."

"Where's Piper?" enquired Darryl, concern showing in his eyes.

"Upstairs. She's not feeling well." Phoebe told him.

"Understandable." cut in Inspector Cortez, "I lost a sister once myself, I know how hard it is. We're going to find the monster who did this to your sister, Miss Halliwell. I promise you this."

At his words Phoebe and Darryl exchanged glances. "Something I said?" Inspector Cortez enquired puzzled.

"No, uh, it's just the word, monster." explained Phoebe. 'If only he knew just how much of a monster he was after…' she thought bitterly.

"Well that's what he was." declared Inspector Cortez, "how else do you describe somebody so vicious? We have to stop before he strikes again."

Phoebe nodded sadly, "I couldn't agree more."

* * *

Piper slammed five lit candles in a rough circle an the attic floor and strode in front of the Book of Shadows. She took a deep breath to brace herself.

"I'm a witch, damn it." she hissed, "I've summoned people before and I'm gonna summon Prue now whether you like it or not. No more games, no more playing the good witch. I want to talk to my sister. I _need_ to talk to my sister. At the very least, you owe me that."

Piper reached out to tentatively touch the page of the Book with the summoning spell on before she shook her head and quickly chanted the spell before she could lose her nerve.

"Here these words. Hear my cry.  
Spirit from the other side.  
Come to me, I summon thee.  
Cross now the Great Divide."

Inside the circle of candles bright white lights appeared, swirling into a human form. Piper took a step towards the circle, hope and disbelief appearing on her face.

The lights dimmed, revealing the ghost of Grams. Piper swallowed hard, trying to cover her disappointment, "Grams?" she asked.

"Hello, my darling. How are you?" smiled Grams.

"How am I?" spluttered Piper disbelievingly, "Are you kidding? Do you guys not get the news up there?"

A trace of an apology passed across Grams' face. "I meant, how are you holding up?" she continued smoothly.

"Not very well." sighed Piper, "I'm a little lost. Why didn't you come before? When I called after…"

"I couldn't, Piper. I was…" Grams hesitated, "…busy." she finished unsure of what to say.

"You were busy?" asked Piper.

Grams paused again, "I was with Prue." she told Piper eventually.

"Oh. Of course you were. Right. Well, that makes sense." Piper laughed slightly hysterically before she took another deep breath to calm herself down. "Is she okay?" Piper asked worriedly.

"Your mother and I are helping her through this." Grams assured her.

"But how is she?" insisted Piper.

"I'm not allowed to tell you now. Just like you're not allowed to see her, at least not for a while anyway." Grams told her gently.

"But, why?" questioned Piper, upset at this answer.

"Because seeing Prue right now, speaking to her, keeps her alive for you. Which keeps you from being able to move on with your life."

Piper opened her mouth to speak but Grams held up a hand to stop her. "I have to go back now. Blessed be."

Grams smiled at her before dissolving in a swirls of white orbs..

Piper sighed and rested her head in her hands, closing her eyes to stop the tears.

* * *

A brief burst of fire signified the arrival the Source. The Oracle was still coiled around her crystal ball, staring deeply into its smoky depths.

"Anything?" demanded the Source.

"Unfortunately since the last attack, Belthazor has been very elusive…" The Oracle replied looking up form the crystal ball.

"Leave Belthazor to the bounty hunters." spat the Source harshly, "What about the other?"

The Oracle passed her hand over her crystal ball the smoke dissipating to reveal a figure of a young woman. "Her future's becoming much more clear." the Oracle informed him confidently, "And it appears…short lived…"

The figure in the crystal ball became clearer and more focused. The woman was dancing, oblivious to her fate. Oblivious to the fact that in a few short hours she would be dead and so too would the last chance for the Power of Three.

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	4. Chapter 3

Well, it's starting to come away from the events of 'Charmed Again' now but parts of Charmed Again will still be happening until about chapter 6, although obviously not with Paige in!  
Hope you all are still enjoying it!  
Thanks to Chyp, Mysterious Midnight and Barb6 for reviewing.**

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Chapter Three

The interior of P3 was packed with people dancing and sitting at the bar or at tables drinking and talking. The band finished their song and applause and cheering sounded from around the club. Paige and her boyfriend Shane made their way off the dance floor and toward their table.

They sat down and smiled at each other. Noticing a passing waitress Shane gestured her over, "Uh, hey, can we get a couple of long necks?" he asked.

"Sure." replied the waitress.

Paige stopped the waitress before she could walk away, "Make mine a mineral water, please?"

The waitress nodded and wrote down the order before walking back to the bar.

At Shane's questioning glance Paige told him, "I don't drink." She smiled slightly, "I used to have kind of a problem with certain liquids…lot of problems actually, but that's all behind me."

"Oh, do you want to go someplace else, or…?" asked Shane.

"No, no, no, I like it here." Paige reassured him, "Gosh. I should. I've been coming to P3 for the last year or so, on and off. I mean, ever since that…" Paige trailed off into silence.

"Ever since what?" prompted Shane.

"Oh, never mind. It's boring." replied Paige. There was a pause as she met Shane's gaze, "All right, but if I tell you all about Paige and you use it against me, I will get out my voodoo doll and make you sorry you're a man."

There was a pause where they both smiled slightly then Paige continued, "So my sad story is that I'm adopted. Only it's not so sad because I loved my parents, God rest. So, after they died, I went searching for my birth mother, hoping to get some answers. I went to the police, found the church I got dumped at, I checked around. I figured she must've lived near here, you know? I even thought I might've been…related to the Halliwell sisters for a minute, but their Mom died a long time ago, so I gave up on that."

"Well, did you ever meet the sisters, ask them about it or…" asked Shane.

"Yeah right. 'Hi. I think your Mom might've abandoned me at birth. What's for dinner?'" Paige gave a short nervous laugh, "No. I don't think so." she finished shaking her head.

Shane opened his mouth to ask another question but it was at that moment that the waitress brought them their drinks. Paige thanked the waitress and took a sip of her mineral water.

"So that, that still doesn't explain why you keep coming here." persisted Shane gently.

"Well, one of the sisters…owns it, so…I don't know…I guess I just kind of feel…connected somehow." Paige wrinkled her nose and laughed nervously again, "Okay. I sound certifiably insane. Good job, Paige. Way to go."

Shane leant in and kissed her, shutting her up and letting her know he cared.

Paige pulled back slightly, "Don't hurt me, okay? I can't handle anymore right now." Shane smiled in answer and kissed her again, more passionately.

After a while they both pull back and stare into each other's eyes. Paige smiled. "Come on." She told him, "I have something to show you."

Paige grabbed her jacket while Shane threw some money on the table and they left the club.

* * *

The night air was cool and refreshing after the bustle of people inside P3. Paige led Shane across the rooftop til they were standing in the centre of the helipad.

"Aren't you afraid that we're gonna to get caught?" asked Shane half admiringly, half nervously.

"I like an element of danger." grinned Paige teasingly. She let go of his hand and spun round, looking up at the stars, "Oh, look at the stars. They're so beautiful."

Paige turned to face Shane, "They make me feel…free." Paige slipped her jacket off her shoulders seductively and Shane stepped forward to kiss her.

A breeze picked up around the couple and behind them a swirling of wind appeared, streaking towards them.

The wind formed into a tall demon, an evil smirk spreading across his face as he saw the couple were unaware of his presence.

Shax raised his hand preparing to aim his powers at the couple but just as he pulled his hand back Paige opened her eyes and screamed "Shane!" as Shax sent a blast of wind at Shane. Shane crashed into the wall behind them and fell down to the ground, unconscious.

Paige turned her terrified gaze back to Shax as he sent another blast at her. She screamed and closed her eyes but just before the blast reached her she orbed out in a swirl of blue white orbs and reappeared in the same spot.

An expression of surprise appeared on Paige's face. She wasn't sure what had just happened or why she was still alive.

Shax, thrown by his mark's unexpected orbing, hesitated long enough for Paige to turn and run across the roof. He snarled as he saw her getting away and turned back into a tornado of wind, following her.

Paige was running as fast as she could down the catwalk when she heard the sound of the tornado approaching. She stopped and spun around as Shax reformed again.

Shax drew back his hand and pushed his palm in Paige's direction, sending out another concussive blast of force.

Paige was frozen in horror, a terrified expression on her face. As the blast hit her she felt herself being thrown backwards through the air.

Blackness exploded in her vision as she smashed into the wall, feeling it collapse with her.

Trickles of blood ran from her nose and mouth as she lay on the broken pieces of the wall.

Shax smiled coldly, satisfied, as he felt the life of the woman in front of him slip away.

The stars shone brightly through the night onto the lifeless body of a young half witch, half whitelighter, disrupted only by a fierce tornado spinning through the air.


	5. Chapter 4

Thanx to Barb6, Mysterious Midnight and chyp for reviewing. Sorry for the longer wait than usual, i just didn't get round to updating. I'll try to update sooner next time, i promise!  
Please keep reviewing

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**Chapter 4**

Shane groaned and opened his eyes. All he could see was a blurry whiteness. He blinked and the room became more focused. He was in a hospital.

A nurse, looking through the door, noticed he was awake and entered the room. "How're you feeling?" she asked gently.

"Uh," Shane raised his hand to his head, "What happened? What's going on? Where's Paige?"

"Well, you have a concussion, but it's nothing serious." the nurse told him, "There's an inspector waiting to see you if you feel up to it."

"Uh…yeah, okay." agreed Shane, still slightly confused about what was going on.

The nurse smiled and left the room. A few minutes later an Inspector walked into the room. He was looking grave and serious.

"Inspector Cortez, homicide." He introduced himself.

"Wait, homicide?" asked Shane, feeling his stomach lurch with horror, "N…no-one was murdered…whe…where's Paige?"

"I'm sorry to have to tell you this." Inspector Cortez said, "But Paige was killed by the person who attacked you." The Inspector placed a sympathetic hand on Shane's shoulder as Shane buried his head in his hands.

"Bu…but why?" he gasped, "Why would anyone want to hurt her? Oh my God…she's dead…Paige's dead…" Shane felt tears come to his eyes as the realisation sunk in.

"I'd like to ask you a couple of questions, if you don't mind" Inspector Cortez told him, "Did you see who attacked you?"

"No." Shane shook his head, trying to focus, "The last thing I remember was Paige screaming my name then…then…I don't know…it was like something threw me backwards. Then…it all went black…I don't remember any more."

"You were lucky." commented Inspector Cortez, "Based on the M.O., if it's the same perpetrator I think it was, your attacker killed two people last week, violently. One of them a young woman who looked a little bit like Paige."

"Find the guy who did this." demanded Shane, "Please, find who did this."

* * *

Phoebe sat on the living room floor, staring blankly into the fire.

"Here, this should help. It's chamomile." Piper's voice sounded from the doorway. She came to sit down next to Phoebe, "I had three cups."

"Thanks," Phoebe took a sip then placed the cup on the floor, "It doesn't seem real, does it?" she asked sadly.

Piper shook her head, "No." She sighed. "What are we gonna do with all of her stuff? What are we going to do with her car?"

Phoebe shrugged, "I don't know. Sell it, I guess."

"Unless you want it." asked Piper.

"No." Phoebe shook her head. She reached out to hold Piper's hands, "We're gonna get through this, you know. We just have to stick together."

* * *

The Oracle looked up from her crystal ball as the Source flamed in.

"My assassin succeeded. The witch is dead." he announced, triumphantly.

"Yes, I know." The Oracle traced a finger along her crystal ball, "I told you her future was short lived."

The smoke in the crystal ball swirled into an image as the Oracle bent closer. It was a gravestone. A gravestone engraved 'Paige Matthews – Born 1975 Died 2001.'

* * *

The door to the Halliwell Manor slammed open with a force that shattered the glass in the panes on the door. Piper and Phoebe's eyes met before they scrambled to their feet and rushed out into the hall. The first thing they saw was Leo running down the stairs to investigate the source of the noise.

Then they saw him. Shax. He gestured with his hand and sent Piper and Phoebe flying backwards. They slid down the hallway and landed almost under the dining table. Piper groaned and shook her head fiercely, trying to clear it.

Shax advanced on the two witches lying on the ground an evil smirk playing across his face. Shax wanted to relish this. The deaths of the final two Charmed One's.

Leo watched in horror as Shax drew back his hand and looked desperately round for a weapon. Not seeing any Leo took a deep breath and launched himself over the banister onto Shax.

"Run! Get upstairs!" he yelled as Shax snarled, trying to throw him off.

Phoebe got to her feet and pulled Piper up, "Come on!" she urged and they both ran for the stairs to the attic.

At the top of the stairs they heard Shax give triumphant yell and they turned to see Leo fly through the air and land unconscious on the living room floor.

"Leo!" called Piper, scared for her husband.

"Come on!" repeated Phoebe, "We have to get to the book and say the spell!"

Piper followed Phoebe into the attic and shut the door behind them. "It won't work." she said desperately, "We can't vanquish him without the Power of Three."

Phoebe, flipping through the pages of the Book of Shadows, didn't answer until she had found the page with the spell to vanquish Shax.

She sighed. "I know, but you and Prue managed to wound him so I'm hoping we can do the same."

"But that's because Prue was the best…the strongest. We can't do it without her." Piper felt tears spring to her eyes at the thought of Prue.

"We have to try…" Phoebe told her gently, then, as the attic door exploded inwards, the wood splintering and breaking, "He's coming!"

Piper joined Phoebe behind the podium as Shax entered the attic.

"Evil wind that blows,  
That which forms below,  
No longer may you dwell,  
Death takes you with this spell."

Shax let out a snarling scream of pain as the two witches finished the spell. He staggered backwards and transformed into a tornado again. The sisters threw themselves to the floor as Shax streaked across the attic and exited through the window.

The stained glass shattered onto the ground below, shards falling down onto Darryl and Inspector Cortez, who were walking up the path to the door. "What on earth are you looking for?" Darryl was demanding.

"What the hell!" exclaimed Inspector Cortez as they covered their heads for protection from the glass. The swirling winds eventually died down as Shax melted into the evening air, leaving Piper and Phoebe looking horrified out of the attic window.

Darryl opened his mouth to try and give an explanation but Cortez turned to him and spoke over Darryl's stuttering, "Believe me, I've found what I'm looking for."

* * *


	6. Chapter 5

Thank u so muchto Mysterious Midnight, chyp, Nathy1000000 and Barb6 for the reviews!  
It'll probably be a while (maybe bout 2 weeks) before I update again coz I'm going on holiday soon and I don't think I'll get the next chapter finished in time...sorry but I'll update as soon as I can.  
Enjoy the chapter!

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Chapter 5**

"Darryl, do something!" hissed Piper as Inspector Cortez barged his way into the attic, gun at the ready.

"He's a cop, Piper. And he's got a search warrant." Darryl told her, looking worriedly after Cortez.

Leo had recovered enough to join the sisters and Cole had shimmered almost immediately after Shax's attack, thankfully not in the same room as Cortez, so the five of them were now trying desperately to think of an explanation that would satisfy Cortez.

"There is a very good explanation for all of this." Phoebe told Cortez as he studied the blown out window. He turned to face her waiting for the explanation. Phoebe's eyes darted around the room as she tried to think what to say, "Umm…Feel free to chime in anytime, guys." she ended hopefully.

Cortez shook his head disgustedly, "My whole life, I suspected magic was real, that there was something more. I've seen too many horrible things in the job to suspect otherwise. Not the least of which…" he added pointedly, "…are the two murders that happened here."

"Wait. Are you accusing us?" demanded Piper incredulously.

"I've just begun to accuse you, lady!" he exclaimed. Cole moved threateningly towards Cortez but Cortez aimed his gun at Cole, "Don't move. I'll shoot."

"Then so will I." replied Cole ominously, unfazed by the gun pointed at him.

"Cole…" Leo frowned slightly at Cole, then turning to Cortez, "All right, look, you can't arrest us. Nobody will ever believe you."

"Maybe not at first." agreed Cortez, "But I'm putting this whole place under constant surveillance. I'm taping your every move. Sooner or later, I'll catch you doing something…uh…_supernatural_, and then…"

Suddenly, mid sentence, Cortez collapsed to the floor, out cold. The two witches, Leo and Cole looked sharply behind Cortez to see Darryl lowering his gun, having just knocked Cortez out with it.

"I think you've been through enough today" Darryl told them, grimly looking down at Cortez's unconscious form.

"Thank you." sighed Piper, relieved.

Phoebe walked over to Darryl, "Darryl, go, get out of here. We don't want you to take the fall for this."

"No, it's okay." Darryl assured her.

"No, it's not. This is our problem. He wants to expose us, not you. Let us take care of this, please?"

Darryl paused then nodded, seeing sense in Phoebe's words. "If you need me," he told them, "you know where to find me."

"It doesn't solve your problem." Cole said as Darryl left, "He's gonna wake up eventually. You've just bought yourselves some time."

"Well…we could try a spell," suggested Phoebe, "Ok, how about…uh,

Take him back, take him away…  
Remove him now, don't let him stay…  
Ummm… We call the spirits to help undo  
And send him off to…Timbuktu."

She finished the spell triumphantly as Cortez vanished from the attic floor, "Wow. It worked!" she said proudly.

"Timbuktu? You sent him to Timbuktu?" exclaimed Piper in incredulity.

"All right…well, it was the only thing I could think of that rhymed with undo." Phoebe muttered sheepishly.

"Don't worry. Uh, I'll find him." Cole told them shimmering out.

* * *

"I don't understand how you can keep healing innocents, but you can't figure out a way to heal yourself." Piper told Leo handing him an ice pack from the freezer.

It was the next morning and Piper and Leo were in the kitchen, having just finished breakfast.

"It's kind of hard to heal myself when I'm knocked out." Leo defended himself as Phoebe walked into the kitchen, yawning.

"Leo, how is possible for an angel to even get knocked out?" Phoebe joined in the conversation, "I mean, you are, after all, technically dead."

"Three years together, and now you're asking these questions?" laughed Leo.

"Well…" began Phoebe but she was interrupted by the doorbell.

Piper headed towards the door with Phoebe and Leo in tow. She opened the door and saw Darryl standing impatiently outside.

"Hi Piper." Darryl greeted her, stepping inside.

"Hi." returned Piper, closing the door and looking at Darryl uncertainly as he peered round the sisters and Leo apparently looking for something.

Not seeing what he was looking for Darryl asked them, "Where's Cortez?"

"Who?" asked Leo.

"Inspector Cortez. The one I hit over the head, the one you said you would take care of." Darryl looked at them pointedly, "He's missing. Police inspectors are not supposed to be missing. Where is he?"

"Well, I kind of sent him to…" began Phoebe, tugging on her hair sheepishly.

"Timbuktu." Piper finished, "It rhymed with undo." she explained.

"Timbuktu…" repeated Darryl slowly as if waiting for someone to shout 'joke!'.

"It's okay. Cole went to get him." Leo reassured him.

"Cole?" said Darryl.

Just then Cole shimmered into the manor crouching slightly, looking around him warily.

"Cole!" agreed Phoebe brightly, spotting him.

"Wait." Cole told them hoarsely. He powered up an energy ball and got prepared to throw it. The four in the hallway barely had time to exchange confused glances before a bounty hunter shimmered in and unleashed a torrent of electricity at Cole.

Cole dived out the way, hitting the ground and throwing the energy ball at the demon. The demon exploded in a burst of flames as Cole got back to his feet, brushing himself off.

"Damn bounty hunters," he explained, "they're like gnats."

"Where's the Inspector?" Darryl demanded.

"Don't worry," Cole reassured him, "I found him. Moved him to a place he can't tell a soul what he saw. Literally." he added.

Leo frowned, "What do you mean? Where'd you put him?"

Cole looked down at the floor and gestured below him.

"In the basement?" asked Phoebe puzzled.

"No, I think he means a little bit further down than that." cut in Piper.

"Oh…" Phoebe understood.

"Cole, he's a cop. He's one of the good guys." exclaimed Leo.

"He's also the one who can expose them as witches." Cole pointed out, "I think that you, above anybody, would want to avoid that at all costs."

"Not at that cost. We have to save him." insisted Leo.

"Save him?" spluttered Darryl, "What do you mean, save him? Wh…what's going on?"

"You know what, Darryl? We are going to take care of this whole mess." Phoebe cut in hurriedly, turning Darryl around to face the door.

"Wait a second. Hold…" began Darryl.

"You don't worry about it." Phoebe told him, escorting Darryl out of the door.

"Okay," said Piper as the door closed, "Maybe you can talk to the Inspector, reason with him." she suggested to Leo.

"And what if he can't? What if you two get exposed?" Cole paused, a worried expression appearing on his face, "What's to say the same thing won't happened to you that happened to Prue?"

Phoebe reached up to hug Cole comfortingly, "Well it's a risk we'll have to take." she decided.


	7. Chapter 6

Thanks to Mysterious Midnight, chyp and Nathy1000000(you always give such lovely compliments!) for the reviews.  
This is the last chapter that incorporates events in Charmed Again and although the next chapters will include parts of other episodes the story isgoing to be more original now and will start aiming towards what the characters are like in Centennial Charmed...hope u all like this chapter and please keep reviewing.**

* * *

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**Chapter 6**

"Help me!" Cortez's scream echoed around the chamber. He shrank closer to the wall, trying desperately not to look over the edge of the narrow ledge he was standing on. Below him was a sea of hot and blazing magma, which, every now and then, erupted in a spray of fire.

"Help me!" he yelled again, terrified.

On a ledge across the chamber Leo and Cole orbed and shimmered in respectively. As Cortez's panicked expression lighted upon the two men his eyes opened wider and his voice trembled, "You! Stay away from me! Stay away!" he warned them, pressing his back more firmly against the crumbling stone wall.

"We're here to save you." Leo called out, trying to sound reassuring.

"You're the ones who put me here!" Cortez yelled back, shaking with fright as another stream of fire rose up from the boiling magma beneath them.

"No, no. Actually, that was just me." corrected Cole, "Hoping you'd change your mind about the girls. Have you?" he added hopefully.

"Killing me is the only way to keep me from trying to stop you!" spat Cortez, pride momentarily overcoming his fear.

"We're not going to kill you, Inspector." persisted Leo, with an annoyed glance at Cole, "But what you don't understand, is that by exposing the girls, you're not stopping evil, you're helping it."

"Oh, yeah, right." returned Cortez disbelievingly.

Cole leant forward to whisper in Leo's ear, "You do understand that if we take him back, it's over. I'll lose Phoebe and you'll lose Piper."

Leo ignored Cole and stretched a hand across the gap between the two ledges, "Take my hand." he instructed Cortez.

"No." Cortez refused, looking at Leo's hand as if it would burn him.

"Take my hand." repeated Leo, "Where else can I take you that's worse than this?"

Cortez stared at Leo hand, then transferred his gaze to Leo's face, deciding whether to trust him or not. Cortez hesitantly stretched out his hand then tightly grabbed Leo's as he orbed them out.

Cole sighed and looked with distaste as the spot where Cortez had been before shimmering out after them.

* * *

Phoebe stood despondently, staring at the rain splattering on the window. She ran her fingers over the dark leather of Prue's jacket, damp from where her tears had fallen.

"Phoebe?" Piper's voice sounded distantly from down the hallway, her footsteps falling gently as she quietly approached what had been Prue's room. "What are you doing in here?" she asked tenderly, pausing in the doorway.

"You remember the time I borrowed this from Prue without asking?" choked Phoebe, grief evident in her eyes.

Piper smiled slightly, "Which time?" she teased gently.

"When my boyfriend's cat peed on it. She got so mad, I thought she was gonna have a stroke." Phoebe sniffed and blinked back tears, "But the funny thing was," she continued, "she got mad at you because she thought that you were the one that had borrowed it. And you never told her the truth." Phoebe collapsed on the sofa, unable to stop the tears form running down her face, "She never knew it was really me." Phoebe whispered.

Phoebe didn't know why this memory was affecting her so much. It was just a little thing; a small argument that happened frequently between the sisters. But it reminded her of all the things that she couldn't now say to Prue, of all the things they now couldn't do together.

Piper sat down beside Phoebe and pulled her into a comforting embrace. "I miss her so much." sobbed Phoebe.

Piper smoothed Phoebe's hair and hugged her tighter. "I know, me too." Piper released Phoebe and sat back slightly, "I was wondering when you were gonna let go." she told Phoebe, relieved Phoebe was facing her grief.

"I was just…I was trying to…" Phoebe sniffed again. Piper handed her a tissue. "Thanks. I was trying to stay strong, you know, keep it together for you…because I figured only one of us could break down at a time. Otherwise, we'd both be useless." Phoebe stood up and resumed her staring through the window. "I'm scared, Piper." she confessed, "I'm really, really scared. She always took the lead. She was…she was our big sister. How are we supposed to go on without her?"

Piper sighed, "I don't know." she admitted.

* * *

"Look, we didn't have to bring you back, you know. We could have just let you rot." pointed out Cole, unsympathetically, as he and Leo hurriedly tried to keep up with Cortez, who was striding past the cluttered desks in the San Francisco Police Department.

"Cole, I really don't think this is helping any." hissed Leo as Cortez reached his desk and determinedly picked up the phone.

"Oh and like your way is?" retorted Cole, eyeing Cortez coldly as he began dialling.

Darryl, slightly apprehensively, approached the trio, "Cortez, where've you been?" he enquired, trying hard to look as if he didn't know what had happened.

Cortez fixed Darryl with a hard glare, lifting the phone to speak into it, "This is Inspector Cortez." he announced, "I need a surveillance team around the clock. I'll take one shift."

"What are you doing?" demanded Darryl worriedly.

Cortez covered the mouth of the phone with his hand and harshly replied, "What I said I'd do before you clipped me from behind."

"You're making a big mistake, Inspector." cut in Cole ominously, "You have no idea what you're doing."

"You want to bet?" Cortez refused to back down from Cole's gaze, his face set in resolution.

Leo, trying to diffuse the situation, caught Cole on the arm to attract his attention, "We should go." he suggested.

Cole stood unmoving, his gaze locked with Cortez's, "Just so you know, whatever pain you put Phoebe through because of what you're doing will be nothing compared to the pain I put you through. You understand?" he threatened.

Cortez contemptuously ignored Cole and turned his attention back to the phone in his hand. "1329 Prescott Street. Phoebe and Piper Halliwell." He told the person on the other end of the phone. He paused, his gaze now encompassing Leo and Darryl as well, before continuing, "They're murder suspects." he stated firmly.

Leo and Cole exchanged looks before they silently turned and left the room.

"Yeah, thanks." replied Cortez into the phone, turning his back on the retreating Leo and Cole.

Cortez hung up the phone and pretended to not notice Darryl still standing by his desk. Cortez made to sit down but Darryl grabbed Cortez's arm, forcing him to acknowledge Darryl's presence.

"Hey, listen Cortez." demanded Darryl.

"Let go of me." spat Cortez, disgustedly, wrenching his arm out of Darryl's grasp, "You make me sick. How long have you been covering up for them, huh? How many other murders have you ignored just to protect them? You're a disgrace to that shield, my friend."

Darryl reached for Cortez's lapels and pinned him up against the wall, "This isn't the first time I've risked my career for those girls - my life, my family!" hissed Darryl, emphatically, "They're the best people I've ever met, and they'll do more good than you'll ever know. And it cost them their sister."

Two other inspectors, noticing the quiet scuffle going on, ran up to the couple and pulled Darryl off Cortez. "Hey, hey inspector, ease up.", "Hey you alright?"

Darryl shook off the two inspectors, straightening his jacket, "I'm good, I'm good." he informed them, his cold gaze still focused on Cortez.

Cortez shook his head and returned to his desk, trying to dispel the faint stirrings of doubt Darryl had woken.

* * *

Shane stood aside from the other mourners, not wanting to intrude on the family's grief. He had only known Paige for a month but he still heavily felt her loss.

The service was beautiful, just like Paige had been. But underlying the pain there was an undercurrent of anger; anger that Paige's life had been taken and no-one had been brought to justice.

Shane narrowed his eyes as he saw Inspector Cortez offer his condolences to Paige's aunt and uncle. They tearfully thanked the Inspector and Cortez turned and went to leave the cemetery.

"Hey!" called out Shane, jogging to catch up with Cortez, "Have you found anything out? About…about who killed her?"" asked Shane without preamble as Cortez turned to face him.

"I'm sorry, I can't discuss the case." apologized Cortez, "but we will find who did this. I'll promise you this."

Shane's thoughts raced as he heard Cortez's confident tone of voice. "You know something, don't you?" demanded Shane, "Tell me, please."

"I'm sorry, I can't." repeated Cortez, "When we know anything for sure, we will make the information public. but until then I'm afraid I can't disclose any information relating to this case."

'Which is as good as admitting that they do know something about the murderer.' thought Shane bitterly, staring at Cortez's back as he left the cemetery, 'well, alright then, if they won't tell me anything I'll just have to find out for myself.'

Shane grimly set off for his car and reached it just in time to see Cortez's car pull out onto the main road. He started up the engine and pulled out after Cortez.

* * *


	8. Chapter 7

Lots of thanks to wiccagrl, PIPER LOVES LEO 1701, and chyp for reviewing!  
This chapter jumps a bit in time so its now a month or two after Prue's death (-ish anyway)  
I think this is my longest chapter yet so enjoy...

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Chapter 7**

"Okay, turn left up here." directed Piper, "And can you step on the gas a little?" she demanded.

Cole bit back an exasperated retort and slammed down the accelerator, wrenching the wheel around. The car screeched around the corner to the cacophonous sound of car horns, narrowly missing a taxi.

In the backseat Phoebe gave a little scream of fright, covering her eyes as the taxi swerved out of the way, the driver gesturing furiously and mouthing something, which although Phoebe couldn't hear she could give a pretty good guess as to what the words were.

"Off the gas! Off the gas!" she pleaded, reaching forward to emphasise her plea with a sharp hit on Cole's shoulder.

Cole eased his foot of the accelerator and sighed, annoyed at the contradicting instructions from the two sisters. "Does somebody else want to drive here?" he asked hopefully.

"Phoebe, the demon, who might I point out may well be Shax, is not waiting around for us to come and vanquish him." Piper informed her pointedly, completely ignoring Cole.

Phoebe breathed deeply trying to block out the chaotic world around her. She had finally thought that things were getting back to normal, or at least as normal as thing could be without Prue, but then… Phoebe didn't know what exactly had happened.

Piper had changed. From being totally against any fighting for fear of losing Phoebe too, she had gradually become more and more obsessed with hunting demons, especially with hunting Shax, without any thought for her own safety 'or even the safety of others' thought Phoebe, grimly as she hung onto the back of Cole's seat for dear life, hearing the car's engine judder in protest at the rapid acceleration and swerving.

"Hello?" snapped Piper, turning round in her seat and clicking her fingers impatiently in front of Phoebe's face.

"We don't even know if it is Shax." Phoebe pointed out, "Or even if we have the power to vanquish whichever demon it is. Scrying for random evil tells us nothing."

"It tells us where the demons are" contradicted Piper, "and since we vanquished two already this week, I say it's working pretty well. And, what if this is the demon that could lead us to Shax? We can't miss this chance."

"Piper, two witches and half a demon does not the Power of Three make. We need to stop hunting every Tom, Dick and…and _Beelzebub_ in San Francisco!" exclaimed Phoebe, "We need some time to…to readjust, to learn to live without Prue, but instead for the past few months we've been repeatedly giving every demon in San Francisco the opportunity to kill us."

"So what are we supposed to do?" retorted Piper, "Sit around and wait for them to pick us all off? If we weren't going after them, they'd be coming after us. And let's not forget Shax. We need to avenge Prue."

"Speaking of, do we have any kind of plan here or…" cut in Cole, swinging the car around another sharp corner.

"The plan is to vanquish the demon." stated Piper, annoyed at the interruption.

"Great." muttered Cole.

The car entered an alley and Cole slammed on the brakes. Around a stack of crates the two sisters and Cole could see a tall, bald demon holding a man dangling in the air, his taloned hands in a tight grasp around the man's neck.

"Hey! Big scary demon!" taunted Piper, getting out of the car and recklessly approaching the demon.

The demon silently turned his glowing red eyes in Piper's direction and a cruel smile spread across it's face as it saw a more desired target of a witch.

The demon released the man, who fell to the floor gasping for breath, but still managed to scramble to his feet and stagger out of the alley.

The demon took one step forward and Piper smiled mockingly back at the demon. She raised her hands and made a slight flicking gesture.

For a moment the demon stood there, his face gradually turning redder and redder before it suddenly exploded in a burst of green goo.

Phoebe and Cole exchanged brief glances before they hurriedly closed the car doors as the hail of goo splattered across the windscreen.

Piper wiped a globule of goo off her face then strode over to the passenger seat, "Next!" she announced, grinning at the easy kill.

Phoebe slumped back in her seat and covered her face with her hands.

* * *

Shane eased his car into a space across the street from the manor and surveyed the house, searching for any signs of life. He couldn't see any movement and he noticed Piper's SUV was missing from the driveway. The sisters were out again. Shane sighed, wishing he had been here earlier so he could have followed them.

After following Inspector Cortez from the cemetery after Paige's funeral Shane had realised that Cortez was watching the Halliwell sisters, that he suspected them of being involved in Paige's death. 'Paige's _murder_.' corrected Shane silently. And not only that but newspaper reports had also told Shane that Piper and Phoebe's sister Prue along with a prominent doctor had been killed in the Victorian manor. Shane had realised that these murders were the two that Cortez had mentioned at the hospital; the two murders that were suspected of being carried out by the same person who killed Paige.

Ever since then, on and off, Shane had been cautiously following the sisters, watching their house. The police had stopped their surveillance after a few weeks, which Shane supposed meant they hadn't spotted anything and Cortez still refused to tell Shane what had made him suspect them in the first place.

Hearing the sound of a car engine Shane lowered himself down into the seat as Piper's SUV drove past and stopped in their driveway. Shane narrowed his eyes as he stared at the sisters. They could be treble murderers.

A man Shane had identified as Phoebe's boyfriend got out of the drivers seat and moodily slammed the car door and stalked into the manor.

Behind him Piper and Phoebe got out more slowly, obviously having an argument. Shane was too far away to hear what they were saying, but their angry, exasperated gestures showed they were clearly in dispute over something. 'Even thieves fall out.' thought Shane bitterly.

At the sound of another car engine entering the street Shane automatically ducked again, hitching a curious eye over the window as the car stopped outside the Halliwell manor just as the doors closed behind the sisters.

A lone man got out of the car and strode purposefully up the steps to the front door. Shane frowned in confusion as he caught sight of the man's face. It was Cortez.

* * *

A few hours previously:

Cortez reread the case file for the third time almost unable to believe his eyes. How had this not come to light before in the investigation? The case was a few years old but the similarities were uncannily alike.

Cortez narrowed his eyes as he focused on both the scene of crime and the investigating officer. The murders of the doctor and Prue Halliwell had not been the only deaths to occur in the Halliwell manor and this case looked suspiciously like another cover up by Darryl Morris.

_'How many other murders have you ignored just to protect them?'_ The words swum around inside Cortez's head as he recalled his angry words to Darryl. It looked like he had found the answer to that question.

Cortez smiled grimly as he looked over at where Darryl was working. Maybe no-one would believe that the Halliwell were witches, not solely on his own testimony anyway, but this was evidence the courts would understand. If he could link this death with the other three, then the CPS could not deny that he had enough evidence to take the two Halliwells to court for the murders.

Cortez abruptly stood up and grabbed his jacket. He crossed the room pausing only briefly at Darryl's desk. Cortez dropped the case file on top of the paperwork Darryl was working on and hissed "I'll get you for this and the Halliwells too."

Darryl watched in surprise as Cortez strode out of the door then turned his attention to the case file Cortez had given him. One name in particular stood out, Andy Trudeau.

"Oh no." whispered Darryl, reaching blindly for the phone. He hurriedly dialled the manor and drummed his fingers impatiently as the computerised ringing sounded in his ear.

Piper's voice came over the line, "You've reached Piper and Phoebe Halliwell, we're not in right now but if you wish to leave a message…"

Darryl hung up the phone swearing softly. They were out. 'At least Cortez won't find them,' realised Darryl, 'for the moment at least'

* * *

Phoebe closed the manor door behind her, trying hard not to slam it shut out of frustration. The sound of a car pulling up nearby filtered through the door as she followed Piper through to the living room, but Phoebe ignored it, her mind concentrating on Piper's out of character behaviour.

Phoebe reached the living room door and saw Piper standing over the Book of Shadows, a black marker pen poised above the ancient pages.

"Oh, woah!" protested Phoebe, as Piper crossed out a page, the heavy black line contrasting with the book's authentic aura. "I know that you're happy that we got him Piper, but is it entirely necessary to disfigure the book?"

Piper ignored her, tapping a finger on the crossed out page. "This one could incinerate human flesh with his eyes." Piper commented looking up, "That must sting."

Phoebe opened her mouth, about to reprimand Piper about her flippant behaviour when Cole stepped in, eyes flashing angrily.

"You think that's funny?" he snapped, striding over to glare at Piper, "You could have gotten yourself killed. Do you understand that?"

The sharp ring of the doorbell cut through the brief silence as Piper recoiled slightly. An image of Prue's body flashed across Piper's mind but she ignored it, using the pain to fuel her anger. "Yes, Cole, I understand _killed_ very well." retorted Piper tightly, ignoring the doorbell.

Cole glanced towards the door, making out a figure behind the glass, but refused to let it interrupt his argument. He turned back to Piper, "Then why would you want to keep risking your life and Phoebe's, not to mention mine?" snarled Cole, his voice rising in anger, "There's a legion of Bounty Hunters on my ass. I'm supposed to be laying low but instead, I'm out protecting you guys!"

"You know what, Cole?" yelled Piper, losing her temper completely, "Next time, you can stay home."

Cole slammed a hand down on the book, making Phoebe jump, "If you insist on taking these suicide missions, you force me to be there because there's no way in hell I'm about to let Phoebe lose another sister." Cole had lowered his voice but his cold controlled tone was more ominous.

Phoebe walked over to Cole and gently placed a hand on his shoulder, "Why don't you go see who's at the door for us, okay?" she suggested, trying to diffuse the icy atmosphere that had suddenly formed in place of the yelling.

"Sure." agreed Cole sarcastically aiming a pointed glance at Piper, "If it's Shax, I'll just ask him to come back later." Cole turned and left the room muttering "We need to talk." to Phoebe on the way out.

Piper glared at Cole's back until he left her sight before turning back to the Book of Shadows. Phoebe walked over to Piper and tried to speak calmly, "Piper, Cole's right. We have a system for fighting demons and it's worked pretty well for the last three years."

Piper tensed her jaw as she retorted "I think, uh, Prue being killed counts as a pretty big glitch in the system."

Phoebe gave Piper a sympathetic look, "I know that you're angry." she told her gently, "I'm angry too."

"Then why are you fighting me on this?" demanded Piper, "What's the problem with getting a little proactive?"

"Because we're not ready to get proactive." Phoebe tried to explain, "That's what's wrong with it. We're barely ready for anything right now. I mean, just dealing with our everyday normal lives is hard enough."

"That is precisely the point. The faster we get rid of these demons, the faster we can get back to our everyday normal lives or at least what is left of them." snapped Piper, turning her back on Phoebe and heading for the kitchen.


	9. Chapter 8

Thank youto all who reviewed...I'm going to reply to reviews this chapter:  
wiccagrl: Thanks for your review and your enthusiasm! im glad u like it!  
Barb6: Well, you'll have to wait n see what happensabout Cortez n Shane...not wanting to give away the storyline but Cole is involved...please don't kill me, its not that i dont like him!  
Nathy1000000: Thanks for your thanks for my thanks...ha ha...It's good you like how i'm describing Piper's emotions because I'm trying to make it a gradual change rather than all of asudden n I wasnt sure how well it was working! I like evil Cole too...much more interesting!  
Mysterious Midnight: Don't worry about it. Thanks for reviewing anyway!  
PIPER LOVES LEO 1701: thank you for your review, hope you enjoy this chapter too!

Read on for chapter 8...

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**Chapter 8**

Cole stormed down the hallway, his footsteps stamping towards the door. Inside, Cole was seething; red hot anger had been ignited in him by Piper's recklessness and endangerment of Phoebe and he could feel the familiar presence of Belthazor close to the surface.

Cole took a deep breath and tried to control his rage; to control the demon within him. Not since Phoebe had brought him back from the Underworld had he felt Belthazor so close to taking over again. 'I can't lose myself' thought Cole, 'I have to stay strong for Phoebe.'

Cole reached the door and pulled it open. At the sight of Cortez, Cole felt his receding anger be replaced first by surprise and then by annoyance.

"What do you want." Cole growled.

"To speak with Piper and Phoebe." replied Cortez coldly.

The sounds of Piper and Phoebe's voices, rising and falling, could be heard by the two men at the door and Cole inwardly sighed, knowing it would be impossible to deter Cortez by saying the sisters weren't home.

"What about." Cole refused to let any traces of politeness appear in his words.

"Andy Trudeau." Cortez replied equally curtly, pushing past Cole, whose mouth was forming the word 'who?', and striding into the house.

"Hey!" yelled Cole, his temper flaring again, "you can't just barge in here."

A surprised Phoebe entered the hallway wondering what the noise was about, "Cole, what are you shouting about?" she asked, then her gaze fell on Cortez, "What is he doing here?" she demanded coolly, distaste showing in her face.

Cole shrugged, glaring at Cortez, traces of his earlier anger still evident in his eyes, "He mentioned an Andy someone."

"Andy Trudeau." clarified Cortez, "I need to ask you some questions about his death."

"What?" Phoebe was too shocked to say anything else. Andy had died a few years ago, the investigation into his death was closed, Darryl had made sure that Andy's death hadn't been recorded as murder.

"What's going on?" a clearly annoyed Piper was making her way out of the kitchen to join the small group at the bottom of the stairs.

Phoebe composed herself and answered Piper, "He," she began, jerking her head towards Cortez, "says he wants to talk to us about Andy's death."

"What? Why?" spluttered Piper.

Phoebe shrugged and Cole took this opportunity to ask "Who's Andy Trudeau?"

"He was a police inspector with close links to the Halliwell's who was also killed in suspicious circumstances at this house. Very similar circumstances, I might add, to the other deaths of your sister and the doctor." stated Cortez, a smug look on his face as he revealed his veiled accusation.

"Andy was Prue's boyfriend." muttered Phoebe to Cole.

Cole's mouth formed a soundless 'oh' as he understood. No doubt this Andy had been killed by demons and now Cortez was trying to pin it on Phoebe and Piper.

"Look," Phoebe began, trying to reason with Cortez, "Andy's death was a while ago, it was investigated, it was an accident."

"It was investigated by Morris." spat Cortez, "Another cover-up to protect you. I will find out the truth, I just came in the hope that you would spare us all a lot of time and confess."

"Confess to something we didn't do?" demanded Phoebe incredulously, "No way!"

"Get out." The icy cold words came from a quietly furious Piper. "First you accuse us of killing our sister, now you're accusing us of killing Andy? This is too much. Just get out now."

Cortez didn't move, "Don't make this any harder than it has to be." he warned.

"GET OUT!" Piper's demented shriek shocked Phoebe and Cole as well as Cortez.

Cortez narrowed his eyes and moved towards the door, pausing on the doorstep, "You'll be seeing me." he promised before firmly closing the heavy wooden door.

* * *

Shane watched curiously as Cortez made his way down the path to his car with frequent backward glances at the manor. Shane thought he could see a certain amount of apprehension in Cortez's face, understandable, as Shane had heard Piper's shout from across the street.

'Something's happened.' realised Shane excitedly. Whatever had happened, it could be the thing that finally got justice for Paige's killers. Shane wondered if Paige had been right about the Halliwells being her sister's. Maybe that had angered the sisters for some reason and that had been why they had killed her; or had her killed. Shane couldn't remember much about the attack but he was sure the attacker had to have been male to throw all his victims with enough strength to throw them through a brick wall.

Shane's gaze followed Cortez's car as it drove off down the street. 'Cortez won't tell me anything,' realised Shane, 'He wouldn't before and he'd want to know how I knew there were new developments' There was only one thing that Shane could think of to find out what was going on and despite the risks of being caught he made a split second decision to do it.

Shane eased open the car door and cautiously crossed the road, looking up and down the street to make sure no-one was watching, before ducking behind one of the bushes that lined the side of the manor.

* * *

"Leo!" called Phoebe watching Cole pace irritated around the room, "Could you calm down please, Cole, honey." she asked soothingly, feeling Cole's impatience beginning to rub off on her.

Cole grunted but didn't reply.

"LEO!" Phoebe shouted again, hoping that Piper was too wrapped up in her scrying to hear her.

A swarm of blue-white orbs coalesced into a worried looking Leo in front of the two, "What? What is it? What's wrong?" he asked anxiously.

Cole cut in before Phoebe could say anything, "You've got to talk to your wife." he stated firmly.

"Okay, Cole, remember what I said about being gentle?" whispered Phoebe calmingly.

"What about my wife?" demanded Leo, looking confusedly between Phoebe and Cole.

"She's out of control." Cole said bluntly.

"Cole!" cried Phoebe in exasperation.

"What?" the normally pacifist Leo narrowed his eyes at Cole.

"It's just, we're very worried about her." interjected Phoebe smoothly.

"What happened?" asked Leo concerned now.

"She's very, very angry." stated Phoebe simply.

Leo immediately stood up for his wife, "Well, of course she's angry. She's grieving." he explained defensively.

"Right, and if she were punching walls, I would happily call a repairman, but…" Phoebe trailed off unsure of how to word it. Cole had no such problem.

"The problem is she prefers to punch demons."

"Well I'll talk to her." Leo told them.

Cole moved to stand in front of Leo, "She has no regard for her life or anyone else's." he persisted warningly.

"I said I'd talk to her." Leo repeated tightly, glaring back at Cole.

Phoebe hurriedly stepped in between the two men, "Guys, guys." she attracted their attentions, "this isn't helping." Cole and Leo looked away from each other abashed, "We have other problems too." continued Phoebe, "Cortez."

* * *

'Demons?'

Shane soundlessly mouthed the word to himself as if by repeating it, it would suddenly make much more sense. What were they talking about? But the stuff about Piper having no regard for life; that sounded like she was putting the other's lives at risk. 'How?' wondered Shane, 'by getting them in trouble with the police? But Phoebe's talking about that now, she said Cortez was another problem.'

Demons.

The word was still incomprehensible to Shane. 'It couldn't mean demons literally, it must be a metaphor or something.' he decided, casually glancing around him as Phoebe related the gist of the conversation with Cortez to Leo.

Shane froze suddenly as a figure appeared in one of the upstairs windows, Piper. He slowly crept back into the protective cover of the bushes, trying not to attract her attention. If he listened carefully he could hear voices from up there too, but Shane couldn't work out what they were saying. As Shane watched, Leo came up behind Piper, who whirled round to confront him. They appeared to be arguing.

Shane looked back to the living room window; Phoebe and Cole were still there, thankfully not looking out of the window. He hesitated, torn between wanting to listen in again and getting out of there. After a moment's reflection, Shane chose the latter; he'd been way too lucky not to have been seen by Piper and he couldn't rely on such luck happening again. Reluctantly Shane carefully eased his way back through the bushes and hurriedly rushed across the street back to his car.

* * *

"She's already started scrying again." Phoebe told Leo, "Maybe you could…"

"…Go and talk to her now?" supplied Leo, "Yeah, ok, I'll try to calm her down." He offered Phoebe a slight smile, although still not looking too happy about how Cole had spoken about Piper, and orbed out, a bright glow filling the room.

Phoebe sighed and turned to Cole, "So, hopefully if Leo can knock some sense into Piper we can then deal with Cortez and his accusations." she said, tiredly, her words unconsciously echoing Cole's sentiments.

"What did happen?" Cole questioned, "Demon?"

"Uh-huh." Phoebe looked sad as she reflected on yet another death, "He was trying to save Prue, save all of us, from a demon, and he did, but at the cost of his own life.

"Darryl covered up for you?"

"Yes, Darryl was Andy's partner." explained Phoebe.

The phone rang, cutting through their conversation. Phoebe went over to answer it. "Hello?"

"Phoebe? It's Darryl, don't talk just listen." Darryl voice was hushed and hurried.

"Darryl wha-?" Phoebe began.

"Cortez is looking for you and Piper…"

"Darryl…" Phoebe started again,

Darryl continued talking over her, "…He wants to talk to you about Andy…"

"Darryl!" interrupted Phoebe again, more loudly, "We know."

"About his death…" Darryl trailed off, Phoebe's words registering at last, "You know?"

"Yes, he's already talked to us, been and gone, Piper threw him out of the house." Phoebe told him.

"Please tell me she didn't literally throw him out of the house" begged Darryl, in a world-weary voice.

"No." laughed Phoebe, "not literally, she just lost her temper and screamed at him to get out, which he did."

"Oh." Darryl sounded relieved, "I phoned earlier to warn you, but you didn't reply."

"We were out. Demon hunting." explained Phoebe, "Cortez came round about a minute after we got in. But why is he bringing Andy's death up? Can he really accuse us of it?"

"I don't think he has anything but speculation." said Darryl, "But knowing Cortez," he continued grimly, "he's not going to give up until he has."

* * *


	10. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

"Look, honey, it isn't just that it's dangerous."

Piper sighed, and dropped the scrying crystal on the map as Leo persisted with his lecture. "Leo, Whitelighters are supposed to guide, not judge." she pointed out looking annoyed, "Just because I'm doing things a little bit differently doesn't mean that there is a problem."

"Piper, I'm your husband, not just your Whitelighter. When you speak to me like that, there is a problem." snapped back Leo, "I can't help you unless you talk to me." he continued, moderating his tone.

Piper strode over to the window and stared unseeingly out, "It hurts to talk, Leo." she stated angrily, "It hurts to breathe. So unless you have some idea of how to bring Prue back, I don't want to talk right now."

"Is that what you don't want to say?" exclaimed Leo, hurt, "That you still blame me for not being able to bring her back?"

Piper whirled around to face Leo, "No, Leo. I don't blame you. I blame evil. Why do you think I'm doing all this? For kicks?" she asked.

"Honestly, I think you're doing it because it's easier than confronting what you're really feeling." replied Leo quietly.

Piper ignored Leo and picked up the crystal again, "I have work to do." she told him unemotionally, refusing to look at him.

Leo stood there, silently watching her for a minute, before orbing out, his face screwed up to stop his tears from falling.

* * *

Cortez returned to his desk to find Darryl waiting there impatiently, still holding the file on Andy Trudeau.

"Morris." acknowledged Cortez curtly.

Darryl waved the file in front of Cortez's face, "Have you actually got any evidence?" he demanded, cutting straight to the chase, "Or is this all guesswork based on your personal feelings?"

Cortez surveyed Darryl coldly, "I will find the evidence." he stated, "I know that they did this, and that you covered up for them. It's only a matter of time before I can prove it to the world." Cortez leaned forward and dropped his voice threateningly, "I know what they are and what they do."

"See, I don't think that you do." retorted Darryl angrily, causing a few other officers to look up, "Because if you did you wouldn't be trying to bring them down, you would be thanking them for stopping the numbers of mysterious deaths from rising sky high. Prue gave her life to save people, just like Andy did. Just because you don't like the Halliwells, it doesn't mean they're bad people. They're not. They're the best people I know. And you need to realise that before you do something the whole world will regret." Darryl glared at Cortez, breathing heavily.

Cortez met Darryl's fierce gaze "Your threats don't scare me, Morris." he spat.

Darryl shook his head in defeat, "I'm not trying to threaten you, Cortez," he told him, "just trying to stop you from making the biggest mistake of your life."

Darryl placed the file on Cortez's desk and silently walked back to his desk, ignoring the curious stares of the other officers.

* * *

Piper nodded to herself, satisfied, as the scrying crystal suddenly went taut and dropped onto the map. "Phoebe! Cole!" she called out, mentally memorising the street the crystal had selected, "Let's go!"

Piper grabbed her jacket and ran down the stairs, meeting a flustered Phoebe at the bottom, waving the phone at her. "It's for you," Phoebe told her, looking relieved to hand over the phone, "It's P3, the band playing tonight has cancelled and the monthly delivery hasn't arrived. Your bartender sounds annoyed…" Phoebe added in an undertone.

Piper glanced at the phone in her hand, then back at Phoebe, "Later. We have a demon to hunt."

Phoebe gestured to the phone, while shushing Piper, "Less of the d-word." she hissed, reaching over to cover the mouthpiece.

Piper rolled her eyes and ignored the phone, "Where's Cole?" she asked tapping her foot impatiently.

Cole appeared in the hall "I'm here," he said sounding irritated, "Don't tell me you've found another opportunity to get us all killed."

Piper gave Cole a stern look, "Fighting demons is what we do." she told him coldly, "It's our duty to hunt them down."

"Hey! Hey!" cut in Phoebe, "Cole is half-demon, remember. We're not hunting him down."

Piper sighed exasperatedly, "Fine, it's our duty to hunt down _evil_ then."

"But not at the risk of losing yourself, your identity." A quiet voice cut in. Unnoticed by the arguing triplet Leo had orbed in, his expression unfathomable.

"What do you mean?" asked Piper defensively.

"The Elders think, and I agree, that you're focusing too much on hunting down Shax and getting revenge for Prue, that you're losing perspective on the whole situation." Leo explained gently. He surveyed Piper's incredulous face and continued before she could interrupt, "Yes, it's your destiny to fight evil, but your aim should be to protect innocents not to gain revenge."

"Since when have I cared what the Elder's think?" demanded Piper angrily, "You'd think that after everything we've done for them they would stop criticising and judging us. Well I've had enough. I'm finished with them and their stupid rules." Piper took a deep breath, "I'm not doing it for them anymore. I refuse to work for them, listen to them or have anything to do with them anymore." She raised her free hand and pointed at Leo, "You can tell them they're going to have to find another witch they can control because I'm done with it!"

There was a shocked silence after Piper's outburst. Phoebe, Leo and Cole were too dumbfounded to speak.

Piper slammed the phone back in it's cradle and stormed out of the house without a backwards glance.

* * *

"So the order was never placed?" Phoebe double-checked a puzzled frown etched on her face, "Oh. Ok then. Thanks for your help. Bye."

Phoebe replaced the phone in its cradle and turned to find Cole and Leo in the living room. "Piper never placed the order for the delivery to P3." she told them, "And there's still no luck in finding a band."

"She's really letting the place go." commented Cole, which caused Leo to open his eyes and send Cole an annoyed look from across the room.

"Well, I'll go in later and try to sort it all out for her." Phoebe suggested, "Any luck in sensing her?"

Leo nodded. "I can sense her; she's angry but she's not in danger."

Cole let out a harsh laugh "Well not until your Elders get a hold of her anyway. I don't think I've ever seen Piper quite that angry before; remind me never to get on her bad side again."

"Cole, this is not the time for levity." ground out Leo, he was badly worried and Cole's flippancy was not helping matters.

Phoebe perched on the arm of Cole's seat, her face concerned, "Cole has a point though. Piper really seemed to mean what she said. I mean, I know Piper and the Elders never exactly saw eye to eye, but I never thought she would ignore them completely. Do you think there's any chance she was just mouthing off?" she asked Leo desperately.

Leo sighed and shook his head, "I think this was one time to many for Piper. She's never liked their orders and I suppose she blames them slightly for Prue's death."

Phoebe stood up, unsure of what to do, "Should we go after her?" she suggested, "Or should we give her some time to calm down? Piper's powers aren't working properly and if she's gone out after the demon she was scrying for…"

Leo nodded, "We need to stop her before she does something dangerous. I can feel her anger and pain, I don't know what she'll do. But what about P3?"

"Oh." Phoebe hadn't thought of that, "I don't suppose, Cole, honey, you could…?" she trailed off hopefully.

"What? Me? Organise a club?" Cole backed away, raising his hands, "I don't think so. I wouldn't know the first thing about it."

"Cole." Phoebe pleaded, "We need you to do this, and you won't be there alone, the bartender will be there. Please? Just do what you can?"

Cole sighed, "Fine." he muttered exasperatedly.

"Thank you!" Phoebe dropped a quick kiss on Cole's cheek before crossing to Leo and being orbed out.

* * *

"How did I get roped into doing this?" grumbled Cole, as he surveyed the mess of P3 around him. It was nearly opening time and it was obvious nobody had cleared up since last night. Litter and dirty bottles were still strewn around the place and the bartender was fretting on the phone that there weren't enough drink supplies to last the night unless it was a quite evening.

Cole fervently hoped it would be. Having spent so long as a demon he was completely useless at organisation and trying to sort the place out was giving him a migraine.

'One more thing I didn't have to worry about while being a demon.' the thought crossed Cole's mind briefly, surprising him. He hadn't reminisced about his demon days since finding Phoebe.

Cole shook his head and went into the back room to look for a broom to sweep up some of the mess.

* * *

Piper nodded her head in satisfaction as the tortuous screams of the demon faded into nothing. Only a few ashes sprinkled the ground where the demon had been vanquished. 'Another one down.' Piper thought viciously.

"Piper!"

Piper sighed quietly "What now?" before turning round to face her husband and remaining sister. She resolutely folded her arms, mentally preparing herself to ignore the inevitable lecture heading her way.

"Piper, I thought we already had this talk." Leo sounded disappointed as well as upset.

At Piper's stony silence, Phoebe decided to try, "Piper, honey, we're worried about you. You're not acting like yourself. We know you're upset, we all are, but please don't do anything too rash."

"What like cutting all ties with the good-for-nothing guys-in-robes up there?" Piper retorted.

"You meant it?"

"Yes." Piper stated firmly.

"Honey…" Leo began soothingly but Piper interrupted before he could say anymore.

"No, Leo, I don't want to hear it. I'm sick of being told I can't do things my way. We tried their way and look how well it worked, Prue's dead. She's not coming back. Not ever. We've given too much for them and for what? For nothing, that's what. I meant what I said before; I'm finished with them. And if you'll excuse me I have another demon to hunt."

Piper strode past the pair, Phoebe looking flabbergasted and Leo upset, before getting into her car and driving off.

* * *

Cole entered the dark backroom and began hunting for a broom or anything that could help with the mess outside. He stumbled over a chair in the half-light and cursed to himself.

"See what you have been reduced to?"

The calm, ringing voice cut through the darkness and shocked Cole into immobility. "What…?" he spluttered, trying vainly to see into the impenetrable shadows.

"You used to be so strong. So powerful." The voice was female and almost teasing.

Cole felt a strong feeling of recognition but couldn't quite put his finger on it. "Who are you?" he demanded, putting strength back into his voice.

"I can give it all back to you. All your power. Everything you once had and more."

A silhouette moved forward, still wreathed in shadows. Cole squinted, unable to see a face.

Cole could feel a strong pull inside of him. He was tempted ad he knew it. He had never realised quite how hard it was to have a conscience, especially after all that he had done.

But, this was the main thing; Phoebe would not love him if he were evil. Cole knew this and held on to it tightly, his safety net. He could not risk losing Phoebe.

"I'm not interested." Cole stated, trying hard to keep the desire out of his voice.

"Of course you are. You can feel it, can't you? The demon inside of you craving to be free? Come back to where you belong, Belthazor. Come back to the dark."

With a tremendous effort Cole shook his head, "No." he insisted. He shook his head slightly to regain all of his senses. "No." he repeated more strongly stumbling towards the door.

"You will return eventually." The voice was confident.

Cole didn't reply but reached for the door handle, twisted it and almost ran out, slamming the door behind him. Ignoring the curious stare of the bartender, Cole hurried across the club and up the stairs to the door. He needed air.

* * *

Back in the room, a tall, cloaked woman paused for a moment, her eyes following Cole's path out of the room, before shimmering out, leaving behind no trace of her appearance. 


	11. Chapter 10

I'm really sorry that it's takne me ages to update n this chapter not very long but I've been really, really busy. I wont take so long nxt time i promise!

Thanks to Mysterious Midnight, wiccagrl01 and Barb6 for reviewing!**

* * *

Chapter 10**

_The Halliwell Manor stood dark and forbidding, despite the sunlight filtering through the dark clouds hovering above. Guards had taken up positions outside the door; demonic guards._

_A man was striding up the pathway, flanked by two more menacing demons. His wife followed behind, ignoring the guards that surrounded her._

_She paused, staring up at the house; sadness, fear and anger were all mingled together on her face. _

_One of her guards, human this time, his hand resting lighting on his gun, approached her and spoke softly. She nodded and continued up the familiar path, now leading to the unknown._

_The man was waiting for her so they could enter the house together. He held out his hand to his wife but she studiously ignored it, already entering the house with her head held high, her human guard close behind._

_The man followed, a slight expression of annoyance visible on his face to any who knew him. The guards were dismissed with an almost angry wave of his hand. They turned and stomped back down the path, shimmering out before they reached the road._

_The man was left standing in the doorway. A smirk twisted his face as he contemplated the manor in front of him. It was his now._

_He turned to shut the door and his face became clearly visible for the first time._

_It was Cole._

_No._

_It was Belthazor._

The white film of mist covering the Seer's eyes faded as she came out of her vision. A malicious grin spread across her face. It was as she had seen before. There could be no doubt about it.

Belthazor would return.

* * *

Leo shifted uncomfortably under the penetrating eyes of the council of Elders. He felt out of place in his mortal clothes and could not escape the expression that he was the one in the dock.

"What?" one Elder exclaimed incredulously.

"How can this be?"

"She mustn't!"

Cries of outrage rang out from around the circle and Leo swallowed nervously, waiting for the outburst he knew would come.

"How could _you_ let this happen?"

The harsh voice demanded from a haughty looking Elder, his hand raised and pointed at Leo.

"I didn't let it happen." defended Leo, "None of us knew what she was going to do. It took us all by surprise."

"Nevertheless," the same Elder boomed, "You should have realised something was so wrong. She's your charge and, against the wishes of the council, your wife also."

Leo bit back the angry retort he was longing to give. "She's hurting." he tried to explain.

"She refuses to recognise our authority anymore!" another voice called out.

Leo spun round, his eyes narrowed as he tried to determine which Elder had shouted out. He began to speak again, to defend Piper, but another Elder cut in.

"She has lost her right to a Whitelighter."

Around the circle, Elders were nodding their heads in approval, "It is agreed." one announced.

"Wait!" protested Leo.

"It has been decided." The arrogant Elder informed Leo.

"If you would wait up here, we will assign a new charge to you." another Elder informed Leo.

"No." Leo refused, "She may not be my charge anymore but as you pointed out earlier she's still my wife. Not to mention Phoebe is still my charge too." He paused, his gaze travelling round the now silent circle, "I'm not staying away from them."

Leo orbed out, leaving a shocked silence behind.

* * *

"It's just not fair. How am I supposed to manage everything?"

"I know, the owner's never around anymore, nothing is getting done."

"She sent someone in to help last night but he was here for like, ten minutes before he rushed out, looking all strange. I mean, he did come back in again, but he didn't do much either." The voice was lowered conspiringly, "I don't think he was all there, to be honest, if you know what I mean. He seemed a little strange."

"Well, I for one will be looking at the employment agency tomorrow. If and when this club hits rock bottom I want to be well out of here with a secure job someplace else."

"That idea's starting to sound better and better. If it doesn't get any busier in here soon, we'll be running a loss _again_."

The sound of the conversation filtered through Shane's awareness as he sat at the bar of P3. He didn't know exactly what he was accomplishing by coming here but here was where him and Paige had been before she was killed and the club's owner was a suspect in her murder.

"Oh, I'm sorry, can I get you anything?"

Shane glanced up at the sound of the bartender, "No thanks." he replied, indicating his almost empty glass in front of him.

"Well, if you want a refill give me a shout."

Shane nodded to show his understanding. 'Bartender's probably trying to squeeze out as much cash as he can out of the few people in here.' he thought, looking round the club.

Since Shane had last been in here there had been some definite changes, the lack of people for one, and according to the bartender's conversation this was down to Piper not running the club properly.

'Something's up.' Shane realised, 'and I have no way of finding out what.'

* * *

"How did it go?" Phoebe asked anxiously, "What did they say?"

"They tried to reassign me." Leo told her grimly.

"What!"

"Don't worry, I'm still your Whitelighter," Leo assured Phoebe, "And I told them that Piper is still my wife, even if they refuse to allow her to have a Whitelighter."

"Oh. Wow." Phoebe sank down into a chair, "This is really not good. What are we going to do?"

Leo sighed, his eyes tired, "I don't know." he admitted.

"It'll be alright. We've been through worse." Phoebe tried to reassure him, "You know how Piper can get, she'll calm down. And so will they." added Phoebe, with a distasteful look at the ceiling.

"It's just…I can't…I can't get through to her." Leo muttered, running his hands thought his hair, frustrated. "She keeps closing up, refusing to talk to me and…and I just don't know what to do anymore."

Phoebe patted Leo sympathetically on the shoulder, "It'll be alright." she consoled him, "We'll think of something."


	12. Chapter 11

Hi everyone, I'm sooo sorry I've been an age updating this story. I haven't forgotten it and hopefully you haven't too! I didn't realise it has actually been about half a yr or so! I am so bad at updating sometimes. Really, really sorry puppy dog eyes

If you've stayed with this story, thank you so much and hope you still like it!

Autumn-371

* * *

**Chapter 11**

The cruel wind sliced through Cole's jacket and he welcomed the pain.

The pain made him feel human.

Cole couldn't get last night's encounter out of his head and he didn't know what to do about it. He didn't want to worry Phoebe, especially with everything that was going on with Piper, but he didn't have anyone else to talk to.

The lure of his old life was pulling at him stronger than ever. To be free to do whatever he wanted, to be free of his conscience.

Glancing down at his watch, Cole sighed, thinking he should probably be getting back now. He didn't want to worry Phoebe; she had enough on her plate as it was.

Approaching the old Victorian Manor, Cole idly noticed a black car parked a few doors down. He was just walking past it when a sixth sense made him turn his head to squint through the mucky windows. A mixture of disbelief and anger spread across Cole's face as he recognised the figure half-lying along the front seats on the car, in an attempt to escape detection.

* * *

Phoebe knocked gently on Piper's door, and pushed it open slightly. "Piper, honey, can we talk?"

Piper's distracted voice floated back, "Kinda busy right now, Pheebs. Can it wait?"

"Not really." Phoebe replied, prodding the door open a little wider and poking her head through the gap. She frowned, "Are you scrying again?"

Piper didn't bother replying and kept her gaze focused firmly on the swinging crystal.

Clearing her throat to attract Piper's attention, Phoebe walked across the room and sat cross-legged on the bed in front of her sister.

"What?" Piper asked eventually, after realising that Phoebe was not just going to go away.

Phoebe reached across and took Piper's hand in hers, "Leo just came back from talking to the Elders."

Piper looked up, "I thought you said this was important." she groused.

Ignoring this outburst, Phoebe continued, "They're trying to reassign him. They've relinquished your right to a whitelighter."

"Good for them." Piper replied levelly.

Phoebe sighed, she had hoped that this would shock Piper out of her hunting-frenzy but Piper's unconcern was obvious.

"Piper, please…"

Phoebe's words were cut off as they heard the sound of the front door slamming. She frowned and got up, concern spreading across her face as angry footsteps clumped up the stairs and along the landing.

"I'll be right back, Piper." Phoebe told her, heading towards the door.

"Uh-huh." Piper replied distractedly, already back to her scrying.

* * *

Cole stormed across the attic, a bewildered Leo following. He stopped at one of the windows and wrenched it open, stepping aside so Leo could look through.

"What am I supposed to be looking at?" Leo asked puzzled.

Cole was about to reply when Phoebe ran inst the attic, looking worried. "What's going on?" she asked, "Cole?"

"Look outside." Cole growled, "Your stalker's back again."

Leo's eyes alighted on the car, now parked directly across the street as if it had given up on the need for subtlety.

"Cortez." he muttered.

"He's back again?" Phoebe exclaimed annoyed, "What does he…"

Phoebe was interrupted again, as Piper waked into the attic clapping her hands enthusiastically, "Come on people! Demon to kill. No time to waste!"

Everyone began talking at once.

"Piper…" Leo began, his next word drowned by Cole's exasperated shout of "Not again!"

"We need to focus on Cortez right now." Phoebe tried to explain to Piper, unsure if her words could be heard over the two men.

Piper was still insisting, "Come on, before they move elsewhere. Lets go."

Wishing she had a whistle Phoebe put her fore fingers in her mouth and blew hard. A piercing whistle stopped the confused babble dead.

"Everyone be quiet!" she shouted, "One at a time, please."

Jumping in before anyone else could, Cole demanded "You can't just indiscriminately hunt demons. Not all of them are bad or evil. Some are relatively harmless. You're going to get yourself killed, not to mention Phoebe, by making enemies you don't have to. The Source is after you, Shax is after you. You need to be working out ways to kill them."

"Piper, Cole's right." Leo cut in before his wife could make a biting retort, "Innocents could be lost if you put all your energy into killing random demons."

Piper blew a strand of hair off her face before announcing exasperatedly, "Well, I'm going to hunt the demons now. So either you're coming with me, or I'm going on my own."

"What about Cortez?" asked Phoebe.

"Are you sure you don't want me to turn Belthazor loose on him, just for a minute or two?" said Cole, looking darkly across the street.

Leo shook his head, "No. He doesn't have anything on the girls yet. Besides, now is no time to be blurring the line between good and evil."

Ignoring this exchange, Piper stalked out of the attic and headed downstairs.

Phoebe and Cole glanced at each other before hurriedly following. They just managed to hop into the SUV before Piper screeched off down the road, catching Cortez by surprise.

Cortez quickly turned the key in the ignition and wrenched the car into first gear. He was about to lift his foot of the clutch and release the break when Leo ran across the road and stood in front of the car. 

"I wouldn't if I were you, Inspector."

Cortez angrily shouted at Leo to get out of the way, before shoving the car into reverse and backing up to drive around Leo. By the time Cortez reached the end of the road, Piper's SUV was no longer in sight.

Hitting the steering wheel in frustration, he looked back to see Leo calmly walking back into the Manor. Cortez swore and dropped his head into his hands in defeat.

* * *

"Piper," Phoebe began increasing her stride to catch up with her sister, "Cole and I do not support you in this. If you insist on doing it, you are going in alone."

"Okay. I'll see you at home." Piper replied, undaunted.

"I told you that wouldn't work." Phoebe muttered to Cole.

He shrugged, "It was worth a shot." he hissed back.

Phoebe wrinkled her nose and sniffed. Stopping she looked around the gloomy alleyway Piper had driven to. "Wait a minute. Do you smell smoke?" she asked.

All three of them stopped walking, glancing around them. "It's in there." Piper decided eventually, pointing to a large wooden door.

The door appeared to lead to a warehouse and as they approached they could hear a man's voice, the fear evident even through the thick door. "What is that? What is it? Stop! Stop! Who is that? What are you?"

Cole approached the door warily, but Piper waved him back, "Get back, I'll blow it up."

Cole raised his eyebrows but backed away as Piper raised her hands and gestured towards the door.

"Uh, Piper…" Phoebe began, looking round at her frozen boyfriend and the unmoving tendrils of smoke.

"Yeah, yeah. Crap. Okay." muttered Piper. She pulled her coat off and threw it to the floor. Flexing her shoulders, Piper tried again, this time blowing the door to splinters.

"Piper!" exclaimed Phoebe as Cole was hit by the force of the blast and thrown backwards to hit the wall.

"What?" Piper turned round and saw Phoebe helping up a wincing Cole. "Oh."

She turned back to face the door and was knocked off her feet by a man charging out of the warehouse. She pulled herself to her feet as three snarling female demons followed the man, ignoring the sisters and Cole.

Piper readied her hands as Cole called out, "Piper, let them go!"

Ignoring him, Piper aimed at the demons, managing to blow up a car in front of them. They turned round menacingly. "Uh-oh" she gulped.

She gestured at them again, this time only succeeding in freezing Cole again. "They're…th…they're immune to my powers." she stuttered.

"Unfortunately, Cole isn't." Phoebe called as the demons moved in to attack. She levitated in the air and kicked her attacker in the face as Piper held up a dustbin lid to defend herself against her demon. The demon just punched a hole straight through it as if it was made from cardboard.

"Piper, unfreeze him." shouted Phoebe.

"What if I blow him up?" she called back, just as her freeze wore off and Cole became animated again.

Piper spun round and fell to the ground at a blow from the demon. Noticing her sister in trouble Phoebe shouted, "Cole!" as the demon blew smoke into Piper's mouth. She began coughing as Cole tossed an energy ball at the demon, engulfing her in flames.

The other two snarled before transporting themselves out of the alley.

Piper scowled, swallowing down another cough. "I'm gonna take out those chain smoking bitches if it's the last thing I do." she declared.

"It might _be_ the last thing you do." Cole replied ominously.


	13. Chapter 12

**A/N:** It's been so long hasn't it?! I guess this story got a little bit forgotten... ooops. But anyway, I haven't abandonded it and hopefully you guys won't have forgotten about it either. Here is chapter 12, please leave a review and let me know what you think. Much love xxxxx

* * *

**Chapter 12**

Piper coughed, the harsh sound grating on her nerves. She tapped her fingers impatiently on the pedestal, and wrenched the page in the Book of Shadows with enough force that the parchment–like paper ripped and fluttered to the floor.

"Damn it!" she hissed vehemently.

"Piper, are you alright in there?" Phoebe's voice floated through the attic door.

"Fine." Piper barked shortly, making an effort to turn the pages more gently, despite her increasing frustration at the lack of information the normally helpful book was providing. She coughed again, and her mood darkened further.

Phoebe appeared at the door, Cole hovering behind. "You can't stop coughing." she accused.

"And," Cole added pointedly, "your control of your powers seems to be getting worse not better. Which is all the more reason to lay low. Those demons are dangerous."

Piper sighed in exasperation, her fingers digging into her palms in tightly clenched fists, "All the more reason to vanquish them." she countered, "I'm going to vanquish the cancer girls with or without your help, so either tell me what you know, or get out of the way."

Cole turned a questioning gaze onto Phoebe, who only shrugged her shoulders in defeat. "They're called furies" he informed Piper brusquely.

She frowned, "Like from mythology?"

"The dog-faced woman from hell?" Phoebe wrinkled her nose at the thought.

Cole shook his head, "Their MO is the same though. They punish evil doers."

"Wouldn't that make them good?" questioned Piper, not seeing an issue with the concept.

"No." Cole shook his head again; "They'll go after a shoplifter as soon as a murderer, and they take great pleasure in the kill."

"Great, then we'll take great pleasure in the vanquish." stated Piper, an uncharacteristic smirk on her face.

"Piper!" protested Phoebe tiredly, "What's gotten into you?"

"Nothing." Piper fought the urge to cough again, and slammed the heavy book shut. "There's nothing in there, I'm going to make a few potions before scrying for them again."

Cole wrinkled his forehead in concentration, "I don't think a potion will be enough, at least from what I remember. I think they're immune to all witches powers and spells."

Piper shrugged, "I'll bring an athame along too." she said callously, "I'll let you know when I find them."

With that she strode out of the attic leaving Phoebe and Cole looking at each other helplessly.

"She is going to get herself killed." Cole growled, "I'm going for a walk. I need to clear my head."

Phoebe frowned in an automatic reprimand, "She's going through a hard time, we all are. We just need time to sort things out in our heads. She'll calm down eventually."

Cole snorted, "Hopefully before it's too late. I'll see you later."

"Be careful." Phoebe called after his retreating back. Now alone in the attic, she sighed in frustration. Everything was slipping away. She had lost Prue and now it felt like she was losing Piper too. And Cole…he would be there for her, Phoebe knew that, it was just…it was pretty obvious that Cole was getting to the end of his tether over Piper. She didn't want to have to choose one over the other.

To take her mind off her problems, Phoebe turned to the Book of Shadows and rested her hand on the cover. The triquetra was no longer intertwined, a constant reminder that Prue was no longer there; that the power of three was no more.

She felt a slight breath of air that wasn't there before, and Phoebe glanced up at the windows to check if one was open. Finding them all closed, she was puzzled until her hand was nudged off the book's cover and the pages began to magically turn, coming to rest on a page titles 'Furies'.

Phoebe read the page, her feeling of foreboding quickly turning into something akin to panic as she reached the final line of writing.

"Oh my God!" she gasped, taking off towards the attic door as fast as she could. Her feet slapped on the wooden landing as she raced towards Piper's room. "Piper!" she yelled desperately.

Not for the first time, Cole found that he couldn't wait to get the old Victorian manor out of his sight. "Bloody, irresponsible _witch_." he seethed, casting a dark look at the window he knew belonged to Piper and Leo's room.

He increased his pace until he reached the end of the road, and turning the corner tried to calm his mind. 'It'll be fine.' he assured himself, 'Everyone grieves in different ways, just think what I would be like if it had been Phoebe who had died.'

Cole shook his head to clear it of this unpleasant thought. He'd give his life to protect Phoebe if need be.

Suddenly, a familiar presence made the half-demon stop abruptly, standing stock-still in the middle of the pavement. He hadn't been away from the Underworld long enough to have forgotten that tingling feeling; someone had shimmered nearby.

"We meet again, Belthazor."

Cole spun around, hands coming up in defence, and couldn't help the expression of shock as he realised who he had come face-to-face with.

"Seer!" he spat, vehemently.

"Indeed." the Seer stared calmly back, a hint of amusement playing around her eyes. She hadn't served a century of successive Sources, just to be scared by a young half-demon.

Cole narrowed his eyes, "How did you know I was still alive?" he demanded.

"I had a vision." the Seer declared grandly, "One where you and I do great things together."

Shaking his head, Cole scowled, "I don't work with evil any more." he informed her.

The Seer reached out a blood red nail and traced a line down the front of Cole's chest. "Even now I can see the void where your demon half used to exist. It craves to be complete again."

"You're lying." Cole choked out.

"No." the Seer contradicted him, "You know how powerful my visions are. More so even than the Oracle's were and more accurate."

Cole frowned at the use of the past tense. "What happened to the Oracle?" he asked, knowing the Oracle had been more in the Source's favour than the Seer.

"I disposed of her." came the casual reply, "It was necessary for us to be able to work together."

"I'm not going to work with you!" Cole denied heatedly.

The Seer gazed deeply into Cole's eyes, "Then you will die." she told him, "You will die a weak and pathetic creature, unable to save either yourself or your witch."

Cole felt a flash of worry, "Phoebe?…" he gasped.

"You will die in her arms, leaving her feeling helpless, lost and above all… angry." the cruel words cut deep. "I have heard tales of the older sister's rage, of her recklessness. It's a wonder she hasn't been killed yet and that is with both you and her sister holding her back. With both sisters out looking for revenge, and with no-one to make them see reason, how long do you think they will survive without the protection of the power of three?"

Cole was silent for a brief moment. "How do I know you're telling the truth?" he demanded.

The Seer reached out a hand, "Let me show you."

Hesitantly Cole stretched out his arm, his fingers briefly brushing the Seer's. A rush of images immediately bombarded his eyes.

_A street_

_A dark cloak whipping across his vision.._

_An empty street, lined by houses in the style of the Halliwell manor._

_A sudden flash of metal, piercing skin and flesh._

_Him._

_Dying._

The vision suddenly became clear. The voices hard and echoing.

_He was lying, gasping on the pavement, not a hundred yards from the Halliwell manor. Blood was rushing out of his stomach as the athame was pulled out, and a cold and sneering face loomed above his._

_"Don't die too quickly, traitor" the voice hissed._

_It was the source, Cole recognised him as the cloaked figure reached a clenched fist down to the side of his face. There was a faint burning sensation and he felt like he was floating._

_"I want your beloved witch to see you last breath…"_

_Cole felt his chin being lifted in a tight grip, his eyes brought level with the Source's flaming red ones._

_"…To feel the heartache of loss again."_

_Everything faded into darkness._

Cole's eyes snapped open. The sudden light hurt his eyes, but he could see that he was now alone.

The Seer had gone, her purpose fulfilled. She had filled him with doubts.

Piper wrenched the scrying crystal in a vicious circle, clenching her teeth to prevent a growl of frustration escaping.

"Easy Piper." Leo warned, alarmed at the deadly fury in her eyes.

"What? Are you protecting them now?" Piper demanded irrationally.

Leo shook his head in confusion, "What's the matter with you? Honey, look, I don't know what's going on but we really need to talk…what?" He spun to face the door as Phoebe's shout echoed down the hallway."Talk?" Piper spat angrily, ignoring her sister's call, "Leo, you know what? I've had enough of talking." With an abrupt hand movement Piper directed a blast of energy at her husband, scattering his orbs about the room. She nodded in satisfaction, turning back to her map as Leo reformed, a mixture of shock and bewilderment on her face.

"Now we really need to talk." he insisted, "Do you hear me?"

Phoebe appeared in the doorway, "Back away slowly, Leo" she warned, watching Piper with wide eyes.

"What?"

Phoebe whispered in dread, "She becoming a fury, there's no reasoning with her now."

Catching onto the situation, and noticing Piper's fingernails elongating into stained black talons, Leo stood in front of his wife, "Piper, you're a good witch. You need to fight this." he stated firmly.

Phoebe held her breath as Piper slowly reached up to touch Leo's cheek. Suddenly in a burst of wrath, Piper's hand contracted and with a vicious shove, sent Leo flying across the room.

Muttering hurried apologies under her breath Phoebe leapt at Piper and kicked her in the stomach with just enough strength to knock her down. Piper came up spitting mad, and slashed at Phoebe. "That wasn't very nice." she hissed murderously.

"Piper…" Leo started.

Letting out a yell of fury, Piper jumped for the window and smashed through in a blaze of shattered glass. Phoebe and Leo ducked to shield their faces from the flying shards and by the time they had straightened up and rushed over the gaping hole in the wall Piper was nowhere to be seen.


	14. Chapter 13

I hate leaving things unfinished so I decided to write another chapter! It's not the best admittedly but I was in a hurry to get this finished after it taking so long for me to update...sorry! I do mean to update quicker but time just runs away from me. I'm on a mission to finish all my current stories before writing another one so I expect that I'll be updating a lot more regularly now. I hope you haven't all forgotten this story and hopefully there are a few new readers too!

Thanks for reading! Drop me a review?

x

* * *

**Chapter 13**

Leo walked into the attic and made his way over to where Phoebe was flicking through the Book of Shadows. "Anything?" he questioned.

Phoebe shook her head, "I've sent Cole out to go and look for her. I just hope he finds her fast because if this is anything like the time I turned into a Banshee, she's gonna be hungry for a kill."

Leo sank into a nearby chair and buried his face in his hands. "This is all my fault." he muttered, "I should have gone with Piper, or at least discovered what you were dealing with before letting her go and fight them."

"Oh Leo, don't be silly. You know there's no reasoning with Piper, especially now." Phoebe soothed, "We'll get your wife back I promise. I'm going to try scrying for her."

Leo watched in silence as Phoebe picked up the crystal and swung it in ever increasing circles around the city. "Nothing." she sighed, "Damn it, Piper."

At that moment Cole shimmered into the attic, crouching slightly, his face bruised and his clothing singed.

"Cole, thank God." Phoebe reached up to hug him, "What happened? Did you find her?"

"I didn't get a chance to look." Cole admitted grudgingly, "Every time I used my sensing powers, a bounty hunter sensed me. I fought off three of them." He sat down at the table looking annoyed, "I'm sorry."

"N-no, it's ok." Phoebe started, then ducked her head, eyes brimming with tears, "I mean, I don't even have a little idea of how everything is going to be ok. You know why? Because nothing is ok. Prue's dead, Piper's a fury and...and Cole you're bleeding!"

Cole wrapped an arm around his girlfriend. "I'm fine." he assured her.

"Wait a minute." Leo suddenly exclaimed, "Try the 'to find a lost witch' spell. That might work. It's worked before!"

Phoebe perked up for a moment before shaking her head and glumly saying, "It won't work. Piper's not a witch anymore."

"Oh." Leo was silent for a while, thinking furiously. "Can you substitute the word 'witch' for 'sister'?"

Phoebe leapt up, "Leo you're a genius." she squealed, "That might just work."

A little while later Phoebe stood downstairs, flanked by Cole and Leo. "Are we ready?" she asked shakily.

Cole paused, "How are we going to change Piper back once she gets here?"

"We have to close the portal of unexpressed fury." Leo replied, his jaw tense with worry.

Cole snorted, "Unexpressed? I think she's been raging for days."

Phoebe cast a warning glance at her boyfriend before replying, "That's cause there's something she's not saying. And I think I know what that is."

She cleared her throat nervously before reciting,

"_Power of the sisters rise,  
Course unseen across the skies.  
Come to us who call you near,  
Come to us and settle here.  
Blood to blood, I summon thee,  
Blood to blood, return to me."_

* * *

Across the city Piper raised her head and sniffed at the air. She waved a taloned hand at the other furies and smiled wickedly, "I know where evil dwells."

* * *

Back in the manor the trio's vigil was interrupted by Cole crying out in pain and dropping to his knees. He clutched his head and gritted his teeth. "They're close." he ground out, "I can hear... I can hear the cries of my victims."

Suddenly the front door was smashed in and a fury raced in, charging straight at Cole. Phoebe levitated in the air and swung out a foot, sending the fury flying backwards to collide with the wall just as Piper appeared behind Cole, accompanied with the other fury.

Leo grabbed a nearby lamp and threw it at Piper's companion. The fury snarled and approached the whitelighter menacingly, leaving Piper alone with Cole.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." Cole moaned piteously to his inner demons.

Piper outstretched a hand and swiped her talons across Cole's chest, drawing blood. She hissed in satisfaction as Cole cried out again.

Flashes of his previous kills swirled around Cole's mind and he gritted his teeth against the pain. Then, suddenly, his memories brought back a different scene. 'You used to be great...' the Seer hissed in his head. Grasping onto any way to stop the pain, Cole forced himself to remember the satisfaction that came with each kill. To remember the glory of it all.

In a brief moment of clarity, Cole reached out and pushed the fury Piper away from him as she closed in for the kill. Gathering his sensed back he formed an energy ball and sent it at the fury that Phoebe was fighting. The voices in his head diminished and he sent a second energy ball at Leo's assailant.

With both furies obliterated Phoebe and Leo approached Piper, who backed off, hissing all the time.

"Piper," Phoebe began.

Piper suddenly leapt forward and slashed at her sister, talons raking bloody scratched across her cheek. Cole growled and powered up an energy ball.

"No!" cried Leo. "Cole don't."

Phoebe took a deep breath and blurted out, "You think I abandoned you. You think it's my fault that Prue died. You blame me. You should just admit it."

Piper paused and withdrew slightly. "How dare you." she hissed, "How dare you go after you precious boyfriend and leave Prue to die here, without the Power of Three to save her. We needed you and you let her down."

Phoebe let out a gasp of pain and stepped back, tears streaking down her face. Cole started forward and snarled at Piper, "It wasn't Phoebe's fault."

"No," Piper's anger was unabated, "It was yours too. You took Phoebe away. If it wasn't for you she'd have been here and Prue would be alive right now. Prue never liked you, she never wanted a demon in the house and look how right she was."

Noticing the wrath on Cole's face and the hurt on Phoebe's, Leo reached for his wife's arm. "Piper," he began.

"And you!" Piper kept screaming, although tears threatened to fall from her eyes too. "After all Prue did, all the times she risked her life, and you just accept it when the Elder's say there is nothing they can do. Why couldn't you have healed her too? Why didn't you get here sooner?"

Tears were falling thickly from Piper's eyes now as she turned her face skywards, "And How dare _you_!" she shrieked, "How dare you leave me! How could you go and die and leave me here all alone?" Her voice became choked, "Please come back. I need you." Piper collapsed on the ground, "Please come back." she whispered.

Suddenly, Piper was back to normal, no trace of the fury left, but she continued to cry as Leo crouched beside her.

"It's ok. It's ok honey." he comforted her.

"It's not okay." Piper sobbed, "She never thought about what would happen to me and Phoebe if she was gone. How did she think that I could live without her?"

Leo pulled his wife into a tight hug as Phoebe and Cole looked on. Cole was brimming with anger at Piper's undeserved anger at everyone, but kept a tight rein on his emotions as he held his girlfriend close.

Phoebe was crying just as hard as her sister and had never felt more grateful for the strong arms around her. It was true. Piper blamed her for Prue's death. She felt as if her heart was ripping in two. How could things ever be the same again?

* * *

Far away, the scene was being viewed by an unknown witness. The Seer's eyes lost their white film as the cave came back into focus and she grinned in satisfaction. Piper's actions were only strengthening her cause to bring Cole back into the fold. And feeling so betrayed by her sister, Phoebe was that much more inclined to follow.

There would be a rift between the sisters that would take a long time to heal.


End file.
